Christmas Feast

Benjamin, our 16-year-old going on 17, has developed a real passion for food this year. He loves showcasing his culinary skills.

In the past, he has often held out on the family on the foods he makes. He makes a long list of food. We buy the food. We make it. Then he refuses to let us eat it.

We discovered this Christmas that part of the logic behind the 'madness' is that he is waiting to showcase the food he made. Since the family in Arden each had their own Christmas dinners, Benjamin held on to a number of the dishes until Monday when our family got together with Martha's sister, Marian, and her family.

The menu this year included: Gingerbread and muffins (I don't normally like it but this was good!), a cornflake marshmallow wreath (kind of like Rice Crispy treats only with cornflakes. Again a great twist on a favorite.) Butterscotch cookies, fudge (we're still working on perfecting that one), a Christmas punch, and a Christmas stollen. We also had brownies he had made earlier in the week.

It was all very good food!

One of the benefits we've discovered with having all this food around is that now that all the pans and bowls have been washed there have been a lot fewer dishes.